39 and 3/4 inches??

[3DisneyBuggs]

That is my soon to be 4 year old's height. We're gong to Dinsey in a month. Do you think she will pass the height requirement or will that 1/4 inch hold her back? I'm thinking she would like Test Track and Splash.

 

[Allison]

I doubt it. I hear they are very strict with measurements.

 

[conwaym98]

We were just at WDW last week. My 5 yr old was about 1/4-1/2 inch to short for Primevil Whirl. They wouldn't let him ride. They're very strict about the height requirements.

Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[Cool-Beans]

They are very strict. Get some shoe lifts.

 

[eblack0409]

They are very strict. Get some shoe lifts.

DH and I were waiting for our FP time at Splash Mountain...this little girl was being measured by the CM and noticed she had healed shoes on, the CM made her take her shoes off and since she wasn't tall enough, she couldn't ride....

The height requirements are there for the safety of your children...why would you want to risk your child's safety?

With tennis shoes, your child might pass the height requirement...but if not, remember, Disney CMs are only trying to keep everyone safe....

 

[Cool-Beans]

DH and I were waiting for our FP time at Splash Mountain...this little girl was being measured by the CM and noticed she had healed shoes on, the CM made her take her shoes off and since she wasn't tall enough, she couldn't ride....

The height requirements are there for the safety of your children...why would you want to risk your child's safety?

With tennis shoes, your child might pass the height requirement...but if not, remember, Disney CMs are only trying to keep everyone safe....

I didn't mean pumps, I meant lifts - inserts in the shoe.

I don't risk my children's safety. I'm just aware of the fact that the 1/4 inch won't make any difference. But thanks for your concern about my kids.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Echoing what others said... they seem to be strict about enforcing the hieght restrictions. My DS (then 5) was quite thrilled when he made the cut-off for RNRC. We had checked before leaving home, but two CMs measured him befoe riding.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Safer, as strange as it sounds, might be to have her practice standing VERY straight and tall, and to hold her upside down by her feet for a few minutes in the morning to stretch her spine.

The thing with using shoe lifts is, it's not the height of the Guest's feet that matters, it's the height of the Guest. Yes, even a half or quarter inch COULD matter. But you've got a month. Maybe she'll grow.

YOU may not think 1/4" matters - but the ride designers and company owners do.

 

[arielsleepingbeauty]

they are very strict. Even if she passes at the front of the que, they may have someone with another height check right before she goes on. I would suggest to get a pair of sandles with a small heel and try to put her hair in a ponytail on the top of her head. They do have height restrictions for a safety reason, but she is on 1/4 inch away.

 

[3DisneyBuggs]

Thanks for the advice. I'm hoping she will grow.

 

[flortlebap]

I didn't realise they were so strict!

The UG says wear a specific hairstyle (a bun on top of her head should do it), use shoe lifts, and even with a quarter of an inch I would think she'd be okay...

...but I would also say that I'm sure the height requirements are there for a reason, so is it worth compromising her safety?

 

[Amy&Dan]

Here are my experiences:

At Disneyland a few years back for our first visit my daughter was close to the limit for the Indiana Jones ride. She was always let on, but sometimes she was measured, sometimes not. Once they made her take her shoes off. She always got on but it was amazing how seriously each cm seemed to feel about that portion of their job.

Also at Disneyland (and this was last year) my daughter was close for Maliboomer. The first cm turned us away, she was crying, I told her it was for her own safety, yada, yada. Another cm came over, told her to stand up straight, remeasured her and then she was fine to ride. I was nervous since she hadn't passed the first time and I was told by this cm that the height requirement allows for several inches to be on the safe side. She rode and didn't fall out and I certainly think myself and any other parent takes their child's safety seriously enough not to risk a catastrophe. I think that if something as little as a quarter inch could mean life or death for a kid, they'd have a different system in place altogether.

I would prepare your child for either outcome since either outcome could happen. I have heard of kids riding a ride one time and not being allowed to do it later within the same trip/hour/day.

 

[Bev J]

She may get lucky and be taller in a month, you know kids grow like weeds..
The problem sometimes comes with the CM measuring, she might stand very straight and tall and pass and even get to ride. The disapointment comes the next day when for what ever reason she does not measure up and is refused to be able to ride and kids just don't understand why yesterday they could and today not.. just prepare your child.
I think with the incidents of injuries with kids that they are just super careful to make sure they follow all the rules.
Hopefully it will work out and she will be able to ride, otherwise there are lots of other fun rides you know she will have fun with...

Good luck!!

Bev

 

[CowboyCO]

When my DS was 4, he was 1/8" shy of the correct height for rides like Splash mtn and BTMRR. I mean there was NO daylight to be seen. It looked like he was exactly tall enough. Two hours later, I folded up a small napkin and placed it in the heel of his shoe. Voila! He had a great time. It made we wish I had shopped for tennies with just a little extra lift or heel support for him. At WDW they are very strict about the height guidelines. Bunned up hair or hats are a no-go. They will check!

 

[susykt4]

When we went in January my DS3 was 39 inches without shoes. With shoes he was stinkin' close to 40 inches. He got on Soarin' once and when we went back through the line he was rejected. He went on Splash once (that's all DH and I could take) and Big Thunder Mtn about a zillion times. Test Track was closed when we were there. The only other 40 inch ride I can think of is Dinosaur, which we thought would be too scary.

 

[cleo]

Isn't it odd to see posts where people suggest ways to get around the height requirements, saying they don't matter that much when it's 'only a little bit', and other posts screaming for higher height requirements when a child is injured on a ride. Very strage.

The height requirements are there for a reason. If, as a parent, you feel they are wrong, fudge it and get the child on. If, on the other hand, you respect the designer's knowledge and concern for their guest's safety, wait until your child makes height. As a parent, it's your decision (unless, of course, the CM's are doing their job). I know what I decided for my son, and I couldn't have decided otherwise. It was a real treat the year he made height for everything.

PS: Shoe lifts and big hair may have worked at one time, but most CM's are well aware of those tricks. They're more of a red flag than a way around it any more.

 

[JSCTRico4]

My DD7 was JUST tall enough to ride Mummy at Universal. But..... they are strict too...... they measured her 3 times at 3 different spots. She was actually on and buckled in, and they released the restraint to measure her again. Honestly, I didn't mind. I STILL held on to her while it was going. She is pretty small...... Never heard of having to take off the shoes..... that IS strict. I would be bummed, but, it gives them something to look forward to. Hope it all works out!

 

[MouseFaninQueue]

I just put my kids on the rack a few hours a day before we go.

But you have to make sure to tie it around their waist and torso. If you just do the usual arms and legs straps then you aren't helping their height much but just elongating their limbs - which won't help you ... Except to fill out that King Louie costume for MNSSHP ...

 

[Amy&Dan]

Cleo, I think the reason why you see differing views on posts about this topic are because there are differing experiences, with the same child, on the same ride, on the same trip. There appears to be not enough consistency on the part of Disney which makes people think it can't be that big of a deal when you have a kid so close to the height limit. I posted about my experience on the Maliboomer ride at Disneyland. When at first my daughter was rejected I consoled her and was certainly not going to try to find some creative way to get her on a ride where she was launched several hundred feet in the air if she wasn't tall enough to safely do so. But when the older, more experienced cm measured her, he had her stand with her back up against the measuring stick and stand up straighter (with her shoes off I might add). At that point she was a good inch above the limit. But I was unsure because that seemed close enough to have two differing rulings and I was nervous. But he assured me she was fine and as a Disney employee told me they padded those height requirments by more than just an inch or two and that no way would he put her on a ride if it wasn't safe. I think if Disney had more consistent policies on this people wouldn't post about lifts in shoes etc. Their policies make people think there is room for a bit of fudging. And on EE this past May, I saw a child measured at the front, allowed in, then taken off the ride as she was boarding, remeasured by a different cm with a different stick and she was taken off sobbing. That is a bad system in my opinion. Not because the kid was disappointed but because that ride was about to take off with a kid who was clearly under the limit. It must happen all the time and I doubt any of the fatalities on WDW ride occured because a child was not tall enough to be on it in the first place.

 

[ducklovr]

I just put my kids on the rack a few hours a day before we go.

But you have to make sure to tie it around their waist and torso. If you just do the usual arms and legs straps then you aren't helping their height much but just elongating their limbs - which won't help you ... Except to fill out that King Louie costume for MNSSHP ...

HAHAHA! I Love it!

I was thinking the same thing after reading this suggestion:

hold her upside down by her feet for a few minutes in the morning to stretch her spine.

Too much!